


life is a bowl of cherries

by agentmmayy



Series: Tumblr Baby Fic Prompts [4]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Baby Fic, F/M, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Gen, Pregnancy, philindaisy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2018-07-11
Packaged: 2019-06-08 15:22:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15246237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agentmmayy/pseuds/agentmmayy
Summary: Melinda’s eye roll was visible in the darkness. “It’s not my fault your child has weird taste.”...Melinda has pregnancy cravings, philindaisy fluff ensues





	life is a bowl of cherries

**Author's Note:**

> for a lovely anon who prompted me "are you going to finish that or..." + philindaisy. if you're reading this anon, I hope you enjoy and ignore how long your prompt sat in my inbox, sorry! writing this refreshed my philindaisy soul

The jingle of the key in the door was too loud, echoing in the stark quietness of the apartment floor.

It was late, too late to be going out. The orange glow from the hallway disappeared from the floor of the apartment as Phil stepped in, closing the door behind him. Inside the apartment, it was dark, illuminated only by slivers of pale moonlight streaming in from the half-open window blinds. The moment Phil’s eyes adjusted, he could see a figure on the couch, a figure he knew very well.

“About damn time.”

“I had to go to two different stores to find it,” Phil defended.

Toeing his shoes off, Phil placed them aside before moving further into the apartment. His wallet and keys landed in the bowl on the kitchen counter as he placed the plastic grocery bag down beside it. Even in the dimness of the kitchen, the bright red and white label stared up at him. Phil grabbed the container, ignoring the condensation dampening his hand. Quietly, he tugged a spoon out of the kitchen drawer but before closing it, paused, and grabbed another before walking into the living room.

Melinda’s eye roll was visible in the darkness. “It’s not my fault your child has weird taste.”

She was curled up on the couch, legs tucked to the side and her rounded belly resting on her thighs. Their doctor mentioned that cravings peaked during the second trimester, and she was right. At five months pregnant, Melinda had cravings any point in the day, but mostly in the early hours of the morning. This was the third time in one week that Phil was sent out at an ungodly hour after being shaken awake by his wife to get whatever she was craving. It wasn’t enjoyable, but Phil would do whatever it took to make Melinda happy.

“Refined taste,” Phil corrected as he sat down next to Melinda, reaching over to flick the light on. Immediately, the container was snatched from his hands. “And it’s chocolate and cherries, how weird can that be?”

“I don’t even like cherries,” Melinda grumbled, though she had ripped open the lid of the container and was digging into the soft gelato with a spoon. Relief flooded her features as she ate the first bite, the craving finally satiated as she quickly swallowed and dug in for more.

Phil watched as she ate. Now, bathed in the warm light from the lamp, he noticed one of his old Academy shirts was stretched over her belly. Strands of hair, fallen out from Melinda’s loose braid curled around her face. She was utterly gorgeous, even with melted ice-cream around her mouth.

“I’m going to bed,” Phil whispered as he leaned over, kissing her head. It was late, far later than either of them normally stayed up, and he was needed at Shield the next day. “Goodnight.”

A strong hand grabbed him as he was getting up from the couch. “No.”

Phil glanced behind him. Melinda had one hand securely wrapped around the gelato and the other holding a fistful of his sleep pants. He sighed, “Mel, I have to go in tomorrow. It’s already late.”

At his words, Melinda retreated, her grip falling away. She leaned back into the couch, eyes glued to the gelato before her as if she was embarrassed. Idly, she began to swirl her spoon around.

Immediately, Phil felt bad. After all, _he_ wasn’t the one being woken up by intense cravings and hunger after midnight. He could see how tired Melinda was. The baby never let her sleep through the night, and when she tried to take naps during the day, they were most times interrupted. It wasn’t fair to her, especially since growing a baby was hard work. The least he could do was sit with her.

“Fine,” he sighed.

The façade fell away, replaced by a pleased smile. Melinda scooted over, making room for him on the couch.

“You play dirty.”

“Your child is the one who wanted this.”

“ _My_ child, huh?” Phil asked, a smile on his lips as he sat back down. He draped an arm over the back of the couch, heart giving a juvenile skip as Melinda curled into him, tucking her head against his shoulder. “I think you forget it takes two to make a baby.”

Melinda glanced up at him, a wicked gleam in her eyes as she suggestively licked the spoon. “Oh, I remember.”

Neither Phil or Melinda had planned to have a baby together. They already had three adults they considered their own, one more than the other two, so neither of them expected it when Melinda became pregnant. She was past the age of having children, but their lives were always full of surprises.

Phil snorted, pressing his lips to her hair. He fought not to close his eyes because if he did, he would fall asleep. Waking up with two extra cricks in his back would not be fun.

“Call in tomorrow,” Melinda’s voice jolted him from dozing. “Tell them your pregnant wife needs you.”

They had gotten married in the spring, a few months after coming out of the Framework. There wasn’t any rush to get married, but when Melinda had found a small box in the drawer crammed behind Phil’s socks, she proposed they get married.

Two weeks later they did.

It was a small wedding with their team members and Melinda’s parents. Their toes were in the sand as they said their wedding vows on the beaches of Tahiti, where, only hours after sliding rings on each other’s fingers, Phil and Melinda began their honeymoon.

Married life wasn’t much different than before they were married, aside from the rings on their fingers. But, each time Melinda referred to herself as his _wife_ , Phil’s heart always raced. Sue him; he had a domesticity kink.

“I think I’ve used that excuse up,” he murmured. In response, Melinda continued eating the gelato. “Do I get any?”

Melinda’s tone was teasing as she answered. “I guess.”

The next spoonful Melinda dug out, she offered to him, twisting a little to bring the spoon to his lips. Obediently, Phil opened his mouth, and Melinda fed him the gelato. The intense flavors and cold temperature were a shock to his warm, sleepy state. The texture was rich and creamy as well as the dark chocolate, but the tartness from the cherries cut through. He could understand why their child was craving it.

Phil licked his lips. “That’s good.”

“I still don’t like cherries,” Melinda said, dipping the spoon back in the container.

“You did when we were younger,” Phil said. “Remember when we went to that fair, and you did the pie eating contest? That was cherry pie.”

“I did it because they thought I couldn’t, not because I wanted pie.”

He chuckled at the memory of Melinda sitting between two other contestants that were each at least a good foot taller and one hundred pounds heavier than her, hands behind her back and a determined look on her face. They had scoffed, but she beat them, her pride evident behind the ring of cherry pie filling around her mouth.

“I threw up ten minutes later.”

“You still won.”

She nodded, too busy eating to reply.

“Hey.”

When Melinda glanced up at him, Phil ducked down, pressing his lips to her cold, gelato covered ones. As he pulled back, his tongue darted out, licking his lips.

“Tastes better now.”

Melinda rolled her eyes, but was smiling, “You’re a sap.”

Phil’s next words were cut off as footsteps echoed in the hallway, coming to a staggering stop at the doorway to the living room. Daisy appeared, leaning against the wall, barefoot and rubbing her eyes. Her hair, pulled into a bun was sagging slightly to the left, and her pajama shirt was hiked halfway up her stomach. Clearly, she had just woken up, if her drowsy state was any indicator.

When Melinda and Phil began dating, they started considering moving off base. They loved their teammates and life on the base, but it wasn’t always ideal, especially when they were interrupted in the middle of having sex by alarms blaring. So, three months later, they moved out. It wasn’t even a question that Daisy would be going with them. Her room was a reasonable distance away from theirs so she wouldn’t hear her parents having uninterrupted sex.

“Hey-“ Daisy began but broke off into a yawn, nose scrunching up. When it was over, she squinted at them, eyes still swollen from sleep. “It’s-“ Daisy glanced at the microwave clock, “one thirty. What’s up? Everything okay?”

“Baby had a craving,” Melinda said. Her eyes were fond as she watched Daisy yawn once more, this time stretching a little. “Come here.”

Daisy stumbled over to them, squeezing between them on the couch as she sat down. Phil wrapped his arm around her shoulders as she snuggled into him, kissing her temple. “What are you doing up?” He asked.

“I heard you guys talking,” Daisy said. Her eyes went to the container Melinda was holding and her brows furrowed. “I thought you didn’t like cherries.”

“I don’t,” Melinda agreed. “But, the baby does.”

“How are they?” Daisy perked up, reaching to touch Melinda’s stomach.

Only, she paused, still unsure. Even though Melinda made it clear that Daisy could touch her stomach at any time, Daisy was always hesitant to do so without Melinda’s explicit permission. Gently, Melinda took Daisy’s hand and laid it on her stomach. After a moment, the baby moved. It wasn’t a hard kick since Melinda was only twenty-two weeks pregnant but still was firm enough for Daisy’s hand to noticeably shift.

“They’re hungry,” Melinda replied, eating more gelato. “Just like you, wanting sweets so late.”

Even though Melinda was far along enough in her pregnancy to know the gender of the baby, they didn’t. It wasn’t that they were waiting until the birth, they wanted to know currently. But, at the last few appointments, the baby had their legs firmly shut and when the doctor tried to get a better view, crossed them. Phil had joked their baby inherited both of their stubbornness.

Melinda offered Daisy the container that the other woman was currently eyeing. “Want some?”

“Yeah,” Daisy nodded. “But I’m pretty sure that spoon was in Coulson’s mouth too.”

“Hey,” Phil said, “What’s wrong with my saliva?”

“Nothing, except it swaps way too often with May’s.”

Melinda laughed softly, hugging Daisy a little closer. “Go get another spoon, Phil.”

Instead of getting up from the couch, Phil instead reached into the pocket of his sleep pants where he pulled out a spoon which he had grabbed earlier. “An agent is always prepared.”

Melinda scoffed, holding the container as Daisy dug into it. “You weren’t in Stalingrad.”

“Come on, of course, that would be the day I forgot my bear spray.”

Daisy nearly spit the gelato out, exclaiming, “Whoa, what _is_ this?”

“Gelato,” Phil supplied.

“The baby has your father’s taste,” Melinda said dryly, even as she ate more.

Phil watched as Daisy licked her lips, brows furrowed as she tried to decide whether she liked it or not. “Do you like it?”

“It’s weird,” Daisy concluded.

Melinda tossed Phil a look. “Told you.”

Phil observed as Daisy took another bite, asking, “If you don’t like it, why do you keep eating it?”

“I never said I didn’t like it,” Daisy corrected, obscenely sticking her tongue out as she licked the spoon, just to gross him out. “It’s really good,” she said. “Wow, like _really_ good. Ok, where has this been all my life?”

“I remember my first time trying gelato,” Phil sighed, a blissful smile on his lips even though his eyes were closing from tiredness. “It was Florence, 1982, early October.”

“Alright show off,” Daisy teased. “We get it; you have a broad palate.”

“Broad palate,” Melinda scoffed. “He never even wanted to try the escargot when we were in France.”

“It’s snails, Melinda,” Phil said. He shuddered. “ _Snails_.”

Daisy pointed to the soggy gelato container. “Are you finishing that or…”

Melinda handed her the container, watching as Daisy quickly finished the remaining melted gelato.

“Coulson’s falling asleep,” Daisy whispered, setting the empty container on the coffee table.

Phil jolted, blinking. “No, I’m not.”

Daisy poked him. “I thought you were going to that diplomatic meeting with Mace tomorrow. You should be in bed.”

“Mace can take Mack with him,” Melinda said. “You’re off tomorrow, right?”

“Yep,” Daisy said. “Mandatory medical leave after that wicked concussion.” She noticed the pleased smile on Melinda’s lips, almost as if she were relieved both Phil and Daisy wouldn’t be going into work the next day.

Since they found out Melinda was pregnant, she was put on maternity leave almost immediately. Pregnancy at her age was risky, and one wrong move in the field or an accident in the base wouldn’t be good. So, Melinda was most often at home by herself as both Phil and Daisy went to work, and wasn’t too pleased about it. It was nice to have the apartment to herself on occasions, but without the two, it was boring.

“Aw, you miss us when we’re away,” Daisy said.

The smile left Melinda’s lips. “I do not.”

“She does,” Phil mumbled.

“We miss you too,” Daisy snuggled closer to Melinda who held her tighter. Daisy’s hand drifted to Melinda’s stomach as she whispered, “We miss _you_ too.”

Underneath Daisy’s hand, the baby moved. Melinda’s heart warmed at the delight on Daisy’s face. “They’re restless when you both aren’t around.”

Daisy frowned. “Do they make you uncomfortable?”

Melinda shook her head, her hand covering Daisy’s as she moved them to where the baby shifted. It was always surreal to feel the baby move under her palm through her skin. “Just when they’re sitting on my bladder and making me pee constantly.”

Daisy’s nose wrinkled. “Ew.”

“Hey, you asked.”

“I did,” Daisy agreed. Against Melinda’s shoulder, she let out a soft sigh. “I love them so much.”

At her words, the baby nudged under their hands. Melinda hid her smile against Daisy’s hair. “They love you too.” She pulled back, tucking Daisy’s hair behind her ear. “Hey.”

Daisy peered up at her, brown eyes bright. “Hey?”

“We won’t love you any less when this baby comes,” Melinda said. Daisy’s eyes shifted away, embarrassed. “Look at me.”

Hesitantly, Daisy’s eyes returned to hers.

Melinda knew Daisy had insecurities about the new baby coming. How could she not? Daisy had told Melinda before about one foster family that, when they found out they were expecting, returned Daisy to the orphanage. Even though Melinda reassured Daisy that they would never, could never put her aside once the baby was there, she knew Daisy still doubted, that was engrained into her from her childhood. 

“ _You_ are my first baby,” Melinda whispered, swallowing thickly from the onslaught of emotions and pregnancy hormones. Even though Daisy wasn’t biologically her child, Melinda loved her as if she was, possibly even more so. “Nothing can change how much I love you- how much _we_ love you.”

From Daisy’s other side came a loud snore.

There was a moment of silence after before both Melinda and Daisy quietly began laughing. Phil, oblivious, slept on.

“He agrees with me,” Melinda chuckled before sobering slightly. “We love you, Daisy.” She pressed a kiss to Daisy’s temple. “You’re going to be the best big sister.”

Daisy squeezed Melinda gently. “You’re going to be the best mom. You already are.”

Melinda smiled, kissing Daisy’s nose this time, enjoying how Daisy scrunched it up. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Once again, a loud snore filled the room. Phil shifted on the couch before going still once more.

“He’s asleep,” Daisy whispered. A second later, Phil snored loudly again.

Daisy muffled her giggles against Melinda’s shoulder. “I guess I should go to bed.”

“No,” Melinda shook her head, tightening her arms around Daisy who melted into her.

“And you said you weren’t cuddly.”

“Shut up.”

**Author's Note:**

> thanks so much for reading! you can prompt me more stuff on tumblr at agentmmayy :)


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